- Note: This article is about the book, you might be looking for the episode by the same name. Please see Stacey's Emergency (episode).
Stacey's Emergency is the 43rd book in The Baby-Sitters Club series by Ann M. Martin.
Back Cover Summary[]
Lately, the pressure's really on Stacey. She hasn't been feeling well. Her schoolwork and baby-sitting jobs are almost out of control. And Stacey's tired of being in the middle of her parents' fights.
Then it happens: Stacey ends up in the hospital because of her diabetes.
The Baby-sitters are so worried. So is Stacey.
Why does she always have it so hard?
Summary[]
Stacey has been feeling pretty horrible lately. She is really thirsty and tired all the time. Stacey is a Type 1 diabetic and a native New Yorker. She lived in New York all her life until, in the summer before 7th grade she and her parents moved to Stoneybrook, Connecticut.
Then, just after 8th grade had started, in Good-bye Stacey, Good-bye she moved back to New York. Her parents promptly began fighting and they got divorced in Welcome Back, Stacey!Stacey's Mother moved back to Stoneybrook and her Father stayed in New York. When the book starts Stacey is starting to go off the diet that she has to stay on due to her diabetes.
Stacey also has an upcoming weekend trip to visit her father in New York. On the first night of the trip Stacey's father becomes worried when he hears her getting up in the middle of the night for water many times. Once, he actually confronts her and asks her to check her blood sugar. She refuses evasively and goes back to bed. In the morning they just wake up and leave for the hospital.
Her mother comes and stays with the Cummings, leading to a whole fight about how her parents can't be in the same room as each other. At first ,she starts to feel better, but then she wakes up one day as bad as when she just came into the hospital. The BSC (minus Junior Members) chose that day of all days to come and visit. They also start an IV pumping insulin straight into her veins. It does bring her blood sugar down but something is wrong. Then they start mixing different types of insulin and Stacey gets better.
Subplot[]
Charlotte Johanssen is really worried about Stacey and she briefly becomes a hypochondriac. Charlotte’s hypochondria disappears when Stacey is able to come home.
Characters[]
Stacey's Family
BSC Members
Kids
- Charlotte Johanssen
- Becca Ramsey
- Jamie Newton (mentioned)
- Myriah and Gabbie Perkins (mentioned)
- Jordan, Adam, Byron, Vanessa, Margo, and Claire Pike (mentioned)
Teenagers
Adults
- Dr. & Mr. Johanssen
- Ms. Baehr - Claudia's art teacher (mentioned)
- Various unnamed doctors and nurses
- Rufus, Darlene Desmond - named nurses
- Dr. Motz - named doctor
Locations[]
- Johanssen House
- McGill House
- Kishi House
- Hospital in New York
Pop Culture and Real-Life References[]
- Paddington, The Dancing Cats of Applesap, The Dachshunds of Mama Island (books)
- Ring Dings
- Hard Rock Cafe, Sign of the Dove, and Russian Tea Room (restaurants in New York)
- Porky Pig
- Jeopardy, the Beverly Hillbillies (tv shows)
- Woody Allen
- The Wizard of Oz
Continuity and Inconsistencies[]
Continuity
- A reference to Stacey liking Porky Pig is on page 67.
- Stacey narrates that Charlotte skipped a grade which means she's in the fourth grade like she's supposed to be.
- On page 6 Stacey remembers when Charlotte stayed with her in Stacey and the Mystery of Stoneybrook.
- On page 136 Stacey remembers when Claudia broke her leg in Claudia and the Bad Joke.
- Emily Michelle just learned a new word (stinky, but she pronounces it “tinky.”) This is also mentioned in Karen's Home Run, since the stories likely take place around the same time. Karen's Home Run is published one month after this book was published.
Inconsistencies
- Stacey's mom has a job in this book, despite her searching in Stacey's Choice, fifteen books later. But it could’ve been a temporary job until she knew what she really wanted to do for a living.
- In the book, Maureen said multiple times that Stacey had a lot of infections and viruses before. But in none of the books was Stacey been sick like that; it was only said that she’d been tired lately. But it’s possible that Stacey didn’t tell her friends how sick she was so they wouldn’t worry about her.
- Stacey’s diabetes specialist (name not mentioned) doesn’t see Stacey when she’s in the hospital because he’s out of town. But in previous books, Stacey’s diabetes specialist in New York is Dr. Werner, a woman.
Ann M. Martin's Dear Reader Letter[]
Dear Reader,
Lots of people have asked me why I created a character with diabetes. The answer to that question is that two of my friends are diabetic, so I knew a bit about the illness because of them. Of course, once the series began, I learned as much as I could about diabetes so that I could write about it realistically.
A number of books in the Baby-sitters Club series have dealt with medical issues. Anytime I write a book like that, I ask a doctor friend of mine to review it. Guess what? My friend is Claudia Werner, for whom Claudia Kishi was named.
Ironically, eight years after the series began, my cat Mouse developed diabetes, so I had firsthand experience with the illness. Mouse needed two insulin injections each day, and I had to monitor his food, water, and insulin intake very carefully. This was nothing like what Stacey has to go through, but it did give me more insight into the challenges she faces. Incidentally, for years Stacey has been one of the most popular characters in the series. I think it is because readers admire her courage and determination.
Trivia[]
- On the dedication page it says "The author would like to think Doctor Claudia Werner for her sensitive evaluation of this book."
- This book confirms that Stacey has brittle diabetes which is an unstable form of diabetes [1]
- This book was adapted into the thirteenth episode (episode three of season 2) of the Netflix series.[2]
- Stacey misses a club meeting to go to NYC in chapter 4.
- Stacey is messy.
- Stacey likes Ross Brown who likes her too
- Cokie Mason got a nose job.
- Kristy, Mary Anne, Dawn, and Claudia visit Stacey twice in NY in the book.
- This book's working title was Stacey's Revenge.
- Mr. McGill never cooks for himself.
- Mrs. Pike and Maureen become friends sometime prior to this book.
- The cover is from chapter 5.
- Claudia has a good visual memory.
- Maureen stays with the Cummings' when she couldn't stay with her brother and his wife because they were on vacation.
- Claudia, Dawn, and Mary Anne sat for Charlotte in this book. Charlotte is the only kid who is babysat for in this book (although Becca did visit Charlotte when Stacey was babysitting for her).
- The BSC visits Stacey in the hospital without their parents twice.
- People who gave cards to Stacey include: The Newtons, the Perkins, Ross Brown, three of her teachers, parents of her clients, and classmates.
- Mary Anne doesn't answer the phone in clients’ bedrooms.
Gallery[]
